Lunch/Dinner Ideas

5 Easy Paneer Recipes | Indian Paneer Curry

Here are five easy-to-follow paneer recipes that you can make and enjoy with rotis, chapatis and naan!

South Indian Sambar with Zucchini

Super delicious South Indian Sambar made with toor dal, zucchini, spices and herbs. Perfect to eat with rice, quinoa, millets or Idly.

Curries, Lunch/Dinner, Vegan

Mushroom Masala made with roasted and ground spices

Freshly roasted and ground spices can do magic to a dish! Not only do they elevate the aroma but the flavor too, by a couple of folds.

This mushroom recipe starts with making an on-the-spot spice blend( that’s super easy). However, you could skip this process and use the ready-made garam masala or your favorite vegetarian curry powder instead! So once the spice blend is ready, the veggies: button mushrooms, bell peppers, and onion are sautéed in oil(or ghee), then simmered in tomato(paste) plus the freshly made spice blend to make a yummy, semi-dry curry.

I like to eat this dish with chapatis. But it tastes fab with white rice and quinoa or as a side with the main course too. I hope you enjoy it! 🙂

Check out other mushroom recipes here: Mushroom Capsicum Masala , Mushroom Peas Pulao, Oyster Mushroom Curry

If you are looking for more delicious, easy-to-follow recipes, follow Swaadista on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook.

Mushroom masala made with roasted and ground spices

Swaadista

Button mushrooms, green bell peppers and onions sautéed in oil/ghee, then simmered with tomatoes and fresh homemade spice blend to make a flavorful, semi-dry curry.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 30 mins

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Servings 3 people

Equipment

Cooking pan with lid
Mixer grinder

Ingredients

For spice blend

1 tbsp coriander seeds
½ tsp cumin seeds
3 dried red chilies Byadagi
2 cloves
¼ inch cinnamon
5-6 curry leaves

For tomato paste

2 medium tomatoes diced
3-4 cloves of garlic
1/2 inch ginger root

Other

3 tbsp sunflower oil or ghee
250 gm button mushrooms roughly sliced
2 medium green capsicum/ bell pepper diced
1 small red onion diced
water as needed
salt to taste
2 tbsp cilantro finely chopped
ginger root thin slices

Instructions

In a pan, dry roast these ingredients on low heat until aromatic. Then turn the heat off and allow the ingredients to cool down completely.
1 tbsp coriander seeds, ½ tsp cumin seeds, 3 dried red chilies, 2 cloves, ¼ inch cinnamon, 5-6 curry leaves
Transfer the roasted ingredients into a mixer grinder and make a coarse powder. Store this spice blend aside until used.
Add these ingredients into a mixer grinder, make a fine paste, and keep aside until used.
2 medium tomatoes, 3-4 cloves of garlic, 1/2 inch ginger root
Heat oil or ghee in a pan on medium heat.
3 tbsp sunflower oil or ghee
Add and sauté these veggies on high heat until golden brown (This would take up to 5 minutes). Then remove them on to a separate plate.
250 gm button mushrooms, 2 medium green capsicum/ bell pepper, 1 small red onion
Pour the tomato paste into the same pan, sprinkle some salt and cook on low-medium heat until oil separates. (If there isn't enough oil, you could add a tablespoon or two more and then add the tomato paste.)
salt to taste
Add about 1 tablespoon of the spice blend, combine and cook for 20 seconds on low heat. (Add more of the spice blend if you feel the need)
Pour water as needed, combine and allow it to come to a boil.
water
Transfer sautéed vegetables into the pan. Combine, cover, and cook the curry for 2-3 minutes on low heat, allowing the vegetables and gravy to come together.
Taste for salt at the point and adjust if necessary.
salt to taste
Garnish with cilantro and ginger. Serve hot with chapatis/rotis. Enjoy!
2 tbsp cilantro, ginger root

Notes

Add salt and spices according to your taste and preference.
Do not add all of the spice blend at once. Preferably add it in small amounts as required.
Add more water and make a slightly runny curry if you plan to eat it with rice or quinoa.

Keyword Bell Peppers, Capsicum Curry, Indian Mushroom Bell Peppers Curry, Mushroom Curry with homemade spice blend, Mushroom masala with roasted spices, Mushroom Recipe

If you tried this recipe, tag your food recreation on my Instagram @swaadista and let me know how you liked it!

Happy cooking and happy eating <3

Curries, Vegan

Easy Paneer Bhurji | Grated Paneer Stir Fry

An under 15-minutes side dish for chapatis or rotis made with grated paneer sautéed in oil/ghee with onions, tomatoes, spices and herbs.

Curries, Recipes under 30 min

Aloo Baingan | Eggplant Potato Curry

Eggplant and potatoes sautéed and simmered in onion-tomato-spices base to make a delicious curry, perfect for chapatis or plain rice.

Curries, Vegan

Green Leafy Dal with Spinach and Dill

For, when you feel lazy to cook yet want to eat something homemade and healthy, this leafy green dal recipe will fit in just right. It’s made by pressure-cooking lentils, spinach, dill, onion, tomato, garlic, and tamarind into a semi-thick curry consistency and later seasoning with spices and herbs.

I learned this recipe from my mother-in-law (we call this ‘massoppu‘ in Kannada), then experimented with different leafy greens and lentils (toor dal and masoor dal). And turns out that this combination of spinach and dill is our favorite. You can enjoy this dal with your choice of rice, quinoa, millet, dosa, ragi mudde, chapati, or even drink it as a soup – it’s that delicious!

Here’s a detailed recipe of green leafy dal made with lentils, spinach and dill.

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Yield: 3-4 Servings

Advertisements

Ingredients:

For pressure cooking:
One box of spinach, rinsed
Half bunch of dill, rinsed and chopped
150g of toor dal, rinsed
300ml of water
4-5 cloves of garlic
6-8 green chilies (or to taste)
1 small onion, diced
1 tomato, diced
1 small lime sized tamarind pulp
1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

Water
Salt to taste

For seasoning:
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1/4 teaspoon of mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon of cumin seeds
2 dried red chilies, split into halves
A pinch of hing
Curry leaves, one sprig

Procedure:

Add into a pressure cooker – toor dal, spinach, dill, water, garlic, green chilies, onion, tomato, tamarind pulp, turmeric powder and pressure cook for 6-7 whistles or until all the ingredients are soft and well-cooked. Turn off and allow the pressure of the cooker to release naturally.
Mash the cooked ingredients well, add salt to taste and water (if necessary), and combine well. Cook this for 2 minutes on medium heat and turn off.

Heat oil in a small pan. Add mustard seeds and cumin seeds, and allow them to pop and sizzle. Then add Hing, curry leaves, and dried red chilies. Turn off and pour the seasoning into the dal and combine well.
Serve healthy and delicious green leafy dal with rice, rice, quinoa, millet, dosa, ragi mudde, or chapati.

Note:

Add salt and spices according to your taste and preference.

Advertisements

If you tried this recipe, let me know how you like it? 🙂

If you tried this recipe, tag your food recreation on my Instagram @swaadista and let me know how you liked it!

Happy cooking and happy eating <3

Curries, Recipes under 30 min, Vegan

Radish Sambar

Delicious Sambar using red salad radishes, potatoes, tempered with onions, tomatoes, tamarind, spices and herbs.

Curries, Recipes under 30 min, Vegan

Beetroot Stir fry with Coconut

Beetroot stir-fried in coconut oil with onion, grated coconut, spices and herbs.

Curries, Vegan

Vangibath (Brinjal Rice)

Vangibath is an excellent one-pot meal when you want to prepare something quickly. Especially on the days when there’s leftover rice at home, it’s just a 20 minutes recipe. And you can have this meal for breakfast or lunch, with coconut chutney or plain yogurt.

Vangibath or brinjal rice is made with cooked rice, brinjal, spices, and vangibath powder. As far as vangibath powder, you could either use a homemade one or a store-bought one. There are several brands of vangibath masala powder available in the market, our favorite being the one from MTR, which I have used in this recipe. You could use the same or any brand of your choice. Continue reading to know how to make this yummy one-pot meal, Vangibath or Brinjal rice.

Advertisements

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Yield: 2 -3 Servings

Ingredients:

For cooking rice:
1 cup or 200g of white rice
2 cups of water

For preparing vangibath masala:
4 tablespoons of cooking oil
2 tablespoons of peanuts
1/2 teaspoon chana dal
1/2 teaspoon urad dal
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
A sprig of curry leaves
2-3 dried red chili, Byadagi for color
Green chilies to taste, slit
A pinch of hing
1 small red onion, sliced
2 long purple brinjals, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1-2 tbsp MTR vangibath powder
2 tbsp fresh grated coconut(or dry coconut)
50 ml of water
Salt to taste

Advertisements

Procedure:

Rinse the rice a couple of times, and cook it by adding 2X water, the usual way. But ensure that the rice is grainy and not mushy.

Meanwhile, to prepare the vangibath masala, Heat oil in a cooking pot and fry peanuts, chana dal, urad dal until golden brown, take them out of the oil, and keep them aside.

Into the same oil, add mustard seeds and allow them to pop. On low heat, add dried red chilies, curry leaves, green chilies, hing, and onion and sauté until onion translucent. Then add the cut brinjal pieces, sprinkle some salt over them and cook covered on low-medium heat until almost done. (Brinjals should just be well-cooked, neither mushy nor uncooked. You could use a fork to tell.)

Add turmeric powder, vangibath powder, grated coconut into the pot, and sauté for 30 seconds. Add very little water to make a thick gravy and cook for another minute. Taste for salt and adjust if necessary. Lastly, add the cooked rice, fried peanuts, chana dal, urad dal, and combine well. Serve delicious vangibath warm, as is, or with coconut chutney or curd. Enjoy!